Plumeri questions Yaede's past campaign contributions

HAMILTON — In April, Democratic and Republican candidates in the Hamilton mayoral race pledged to disclose all campaign contributions, even those below New Jersey’s $300 threshold for reporting.

Now, Democrat Barbara Plumeri is calling out incumbent mayor Kelly Yaede for not entirely holding up her end of the deal.

In a release earlier this week, Plumeri urged Yaede to disclose the names of previous contributors who donated to her council campaign, funds which the mayor transferred into her current mayoral account.

“Yaede transferred $20,000 from her previous campaign account to her newly opened mayoral account but failed to disclose the name of donors who donated at least part of that $20,000. As a result, it is impossible for voters to assess whether Yaede is hiding donations from the same township vendors who are facing indictment for violating pay-to-play laws through the Bencivengo-Yaede years,” the release said.

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With Hamilton’s murky past of under-the-table illegal campaign contributions, all of the candidates in the current Hamilton mayoral race want to publicly lay out their money. Both Plumeri and Yaede have been detailing their campaign contributions, even under $300 donations, and filing with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission. Both of their donation filings can be found online at the NJELEC website. Independent candidate Antonio Gambino said he has not received any campaign donations, but that he is disclosing any monies that come his way. The next date to file contributions is Oct. 7.

While the Democratic candidate acknowledges her opponent has been disclosing each amount she receives, she wants to know where the money from previous campaigns came from. Plumeri said that as we’ve all seen, some of these donations are in regard to Birdsall Services Group money.

“Many of those (Birdsall donations) went through council candidates and the Republican committee. I just think that in an election year like this one, as we try to move past all of the corruption, it’s important to set the example and it’s important for us to know where that $20,000 came from,” the Democrat said.

According to the mayor, those donations were reported a long time ago.

“Birdsall never gave me a contribution. Once again Barbara is rehashing issues which have been addressed five years ago, and then this past February, rather than focusing on taxes, spending, economic development, and those issues that affect the daily lives of residents,” Yaede said.

The secret list of Birdsall donations does indicate Yaede at least was associated with campaigns that received contributions. The Election Financial Officer for the Bencivengo, Yaede, and Meara campaign received $600 from Birdsall in Oct. 2011. The Hamilton Republican Committee also received approximately $5,500 secret payments from 2008 to 2011.

“Furthermore she has yet to explain the shady contributions she has received from a democratic law firm where 20 of their employees just happened to give $119.05 each. That’s an odd amount from one firm to give; I don’t know of any event or fundraiser that would charge that amount. So are they skirting the pay to play?” Yaede asked.

The firm Yaede is referring to is DeCotiis, FitzPatrick & Cole, LLP, a Teaneck law firm that contributed 21 donations of $119.05 to Plumeri’s campaign, equaling $2,500.05. None of the individual contributors live in Hamilton Township.

“I’m originally from North Jersey and I’ve been living down here for over 20 years,” Plumeri said, “As a matter of fact if I was abiding by the current law I wouldn’t even have to report that. But all of the partners from that firm, they are people who know me and are friends with me, they decided to keep it within the limits and I disclosed it all. I know a lot of people from North Jersey and there is a lot of support from personal friends, not only locally but around the state. I’m fortunate they all got together and contributed to my campaign.”

DeCotiis, FitzPatrick & Cole, LLP did not wish to comment on the contributions.

Gambino said that from what he understands, a lot of Kelly Yaede’s money came from John Bencivengo’s campaign.

“And you see where Bencivengo is at now right? The way I see things, here in this town is that there is a lot of dirty money floating around. It’s been floating around, if she held $20,000, you know where it came from. It’s all Birdsall money, Marliese Ljuba money. If you know anything about this town this is where this money came from,” Gambino said.

“If you have a Republican or a Democratic sign on your lawn, that tells me that you accept and support corruption in the Hamilton Township mayor’s race,” Gambino added.

Mayor Yaede said that now is the time that residents deserve what her opponents are going to do.

“As a Hamiltonian, I have made the tough choices and have a proven record on taxes, spending, and economic development. To date my opponents have been silent on these issues,” Yaede said.

About the Author

Megan Goldschmidt is the Hamilton, Princeton, and Robbinsville beat reporter for the Trentonian. She recently launched her career in the journalism industry after graduating from Ithaca College, and enjoys learning about different areas and industries with every new story she writes. Reach the author at mgoldschmidt@trentonian.com
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